


Whale, This is How it Started

by darkwings17



Series: Whale Hello There [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Dean Thinks Hes Adorable, Dean Thinks Hes Funny, Field Trip, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, Meet-Cute, POV Dean Winchester, Stupid Animal Puns, Teacher Dean Winchester, Zoo, Zookeeper Cas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:08:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24199483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkwings17/pseuds/darkwings17
Summary: Dean Winchester has just moved to a new city where he knows no one. The city has a zoo though, so he knows he will be just fine.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Series: Whale Hello There [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1745023
Comments: 11
Kudos: 108





	Whale, This is How it Started

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y'all!! Thank you so much for your feedback on Whale Hello There! It was unreal and I got a lot of you wanting the prequel, so here it is! Hope you guys enjoy!! :)
> 
> And thank you to [Boudica176](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Boudica176/pseuds/Boudica176) for the beta on this! 
> 
> *Note: This is part 2 of the series and the prequel, but I highly recommend reading part 1 first if you haven't yet!

Moving to a new city is never easy. It’s especially not easy when you don’t know a single soul. But there is work and that is the most important part. You can always meet new people, and everyone gets used to the place they live in eventually. Dean has been in this new city for two months now. He got the call last minute for the job opening at one of the elementary schools. Third grade. Exactly what he was looking for and from all of his research, it seemed like a perfect place to start the next chapter of his life. Plus, the city had a zoo; which is just awesome! So, he packed up all of his things, and moved to completely uncharted territory.

Now it’s a month into the new school year, and Dean knows he made the best decision of his life. He loves the city, loves the school and his coworkers, and he especially loves his kids. It’s been his dream for as long as he can remember, to be a teacher. Now he gets to live that dream every day. Sure there are hard days, but there are hard days in any job. The good days are unbelievable though. When he can see kids write their name in cursive for the first time and how their face lights up. Or when one of them beats the timer for their addition tables and gets another scoop of ice cream on their paper cone, and a real popsicle of course. Those kids deserve all of the awards they earn. They also laugh at his stupid puns and jokes, so yeah, he loves these kids.

Dean has been waiting for this day to come for well over a month and now that it’s finally here he can’t keep the smile off his face. It’s field trip day. He was able to convince, it really didn’t take much, the principal to allow him to take his class to the zoo for a day. When he brought it up to his class the kids were so excited he couldn’t get them to focus back on their writing for at least ten minutes. Permission slips signed and two parent volunteers to help corral the kids he started to plan his whole day. There's a chance Dean is more excited than the kids are, he hasn’t been to a zoo in ages. It’s safe to say that the night before, Dean didn’t get more than a couple of hours of sleep.

Everything is ready. The kids are on the bus. Dean has all of the mini clipboards and worksheets for the kids to do while they’re at the zoo. It’s just a list of the animals they will be seeing and a space to write a fun fact they learned about the animal. They just need to get at least five to earn all of their participation points for the day. Dean did a lot of research on the zoo to prepare for the day and now he can’t wait until they’re there. 

They reach the zoo and everyone piles out of the bus. Dean leaves the two parents to watch the kids while he goes to the gate to get their tickets and make sure they have the tour guide waiting for them. He is assured that the zoo has two of their zookeepers waiting for the class just inside the gates. With a smile, Dean walks back to the class. The parents have already handed out the clipboards and pencils to the kids, so they split into their two groups and follow their teacher through the gates. 

Dean sees two men standing together in zookeeper uniforms looking at the entrance expectantly. The shorter one has light brown hair that would rival Dean’s little brother’s hair in length. But the other man. He really catches Dean’s attention. A little shorter than Dean himself, but still fairly tall and a mop of dark hair that is just begging to have fingers run through it. When the class gets closer Dean is met with deep blue eyes that almost seem to glow. Dark hair and blue eyes? Dean is so screwed. That's not even mentioning the other features this gorgeous man is blessed with. A strong jawline, a full pair of soft lips, and a body Dean can’t seem to take his eyes off of. The shorter man clears his throat pulling Dean out of his trance and when he looks over a knowing smirk fills the man's face. Dean feels heat make its way up the back of his neck from embarrassment at being caught and turns back to the blue-eyed man. Of course, that didn’t help at all. Blue eyes squint at him with a slight head tilt which has absolutely no right being equal parts incredibly attractive and adorable. 

Dean tries his absolute best to get himself back in control and attempts to smile his most charming smile. “Whale hello there, I’m Dean Winchester.”

The shorter man snorts, and the taller man just squints a little bit more. Definitely not the reaction Dean was going for. His smile falters a little before he hears quiet giggles behind him. A couple of his kids catch the pun and smile up at him which brings back Dean’s smile in full force. Who cares what the zookeepers think about his puns? He says them for the kids' entertainment and they love them. So ha! Dean Winchester is still freaking awesome.

“Hello, I’m Castiel and this is Gabriel. We will be your tour guides for today,” Mr. Blue Eyes says, and hot damn that voice is gravelly and smooth all at the same. “I understand you will split the class into two groups, correct?”

“Um, yeah,” Nice going Winchester, at least try to act like you have a brain. “Yes, the kids already know their groups and I have two parent volunteers to go with one group and I'll go with the other.”

“I’ll take the group with the parent volunteers,” Gabriel chimes in quickly, with a smirk on his lips, knowing exactly what is going on with Dean. 

“Ok, I will take Mr. Winchester and his group then.”

“Dean, it’s just Dean, please. The kids call me Mr. Dean,” He replies with a smile. As the two groups start to split up, Dean stops Gabriel before he can get too far. “Hey, so I brought a treat for the kids and it kinda goes along with a joke I have. Would you mind doing it for your group, so they all can get some?”

A genuine smile replaces the smirk on Gabe’s face, “Sure thing Dean-o, just tell me what you need me to do.”

“Thanks, man,” Dean explains his joke and hands the shorter man a handful of small packages. They do their best to hide them from the kids and since none of them ask a question it seems like a success. Gabe heads out with his group to see the big cat exhibits leaving Dean with Castiel and his group of kids. 

“Hello all, as I said, my name is Castiel and I’ll be leading your tour today. We will start at the bear exhibits, if you have questions please feel free to ask at any point,” Castiel explains in that deep voice. He kind of sounds like a robot with the way he talks and if Dean is being honest, he really likes it. It’s different, but a good different. Dean wonders if this is Cas’ professional voice he uses for tours or if he talks like this all the time. When no hands go in the air the zookeeper looks at Dean for confirmation.

“Lead the way Captain,” Dean says with a mock salute. The blue-eyed man looks at him with a confused head tilt before turning and leading the group further into the zoo. Dean’s hand drops from the solute to drag down his face. God this guy thinks I’m an idiot already. The teacher reminds himself that he is here for the kids, to keep them interested and engaged. He is not there to hit on an extremely attractive man who he has just met and knows nothing about. 

The group reaches the polar bear habitat a few minutes later. Dean can see two polar bears playing in the water, but the group is too high to see what they are actually doing. Which he finds kind of a bummer, but then Castiel keeps walking and leads the group to a lower viewing area. The kids rush to the glass to get closer to a bear swimming by and they all have huge smiles on their faces. Of course, Dean is right there with them, hands and face pressing against the glass trying to get as close as possible to the giant creatures. A throat clearing behind him brings Dean’s attention back to their tour guide. Who is now staring at him with an amused smile.

Slightly embarrassed Dean rubs the back of his neck, “Sorry, it’s been a while since I’ve been to a zoo.”

“No need for apologies, the polar bears are entertaining.” The zookeeper replies.

“Mr. Castle?” A young boy interrupts the two adults. Dean kinda chuckles at the name, Castiel is kind of a mouthful, especially for his little third graders. 

To Dean’s surprise, Castiel actually kneels down to be eye level with the student, “Yes?”

“Do the bears have names?” 

The corners of Cas’ mouth twitch up and he nods at the little boy before calling for the attention of the rest of the class. “The polar bear you can see in the water right now is Max and then his friend up on the rocks right now is Salem. Max is still pretty young, but Salem is almost 20 years old now. Polar bears are actually the largest carnivore that lives on land, more specifically the Arctic.”

The kids look up at the man in awe thinking he’s the smartest person ever. Dean takes the chance to remind them of their paper, “Hey guys remember the paper we handed out to you on the bus? That might be a good thing to write down next to polar bears. You can even write their names or what Mr. Cas said about where they live.”

“Cas?”

“Yeah sorry I hope that's ok? Castiel is a little much for the kids to remember and say correctly. Don’t get me wrong you have an awesome name, but they’re only eight,” Dean explains quietly.

“Cas is fine. Better than what Gabriel calls me that’s for sure,” Cas replies.

“What does he call you?” Dean asks curiously.

“Cassie,” He frowns, looking deeply offended by the nickname. Dean just laughs out loud drawing the attention of a few of the kids. He waves them off and they get back to their assignment.

“I promise I will never call you Cassie, if that makes you feel any better.”

“Yes, it does. Thank you.” 

The two men watch as the kids finish writing and return their attention back to the polar bears. Eventually, they have to move forward and Cas takes them to see the grizzly bears and then the American black bears. The zookeeper has fun facts about each species for the kids and they all seem interested. Some are starting to get more and more distracted, so Dean knows he’s gotta act soon if he wants to keep them invested in this trip. When Cas leads them to the final bear habitat Dean sees his chance. Of course, Dean lets the zookeeper do his little speech before stepping in. 

“Hey kiddos, I have a joke for you all, it's pretty bad though so bear with me,” Dean says enthusiastically with a lot of emphasis on the word bear. A few of the kids giggle at the pun, so Dean continues. “What do you call a bear with no teeth?”

A couple of the kids look genuinely confused at the joke while others are just waiting for the answer. Dean sneaks a peek at Castiel and sees his head tilted in confusion again. For some odd reason, the head tilt really does things to Dean and he really needs to get himself back under control and finish the damn joke.

“A gummy bear!” He exclaims as he takes out a handful of mini gummy bear packs from his pocket. The kids make sounds of excitement and crowd around him wanting the sugary treats. Once all of the kids have their packet they watch the bears hanging around the exhibit. Dean finds himself drawn to the blue-eyed zookeeper and realizes they haven’t really talked much yet. He wanders over to stand shoulder to shoulder with the man, but finds himself unable to speak. Nothing comes to mind of what to say to the man and Dean is never one to not have words. In the past, he has always been able to turn on the charm whether he was talking to a man or woman. Cas here seems to render him speechless though.

Dean mentally kicks himself when he remembers where he is. This is Cas’ workplace. He shouldn't be trying to hit on the guy here, especially in front of all of the kids. Dean wouldn’t want someone to come into his classroom and try to hit on him while he’s working. The silence hangs between the two men and grows increasingly uncomfortable. At least for Dean, Castiel doesn’t seem like it is affecting him at all. The man just stands there watching the kids and the other guests. With a heavy sigh, Dean turns his attention from the blue-eyed man to his group of kids.

Several minutes later the group finds themselves at the big cat habitats. They’ve seen the cheetahs and tigers so far. The kids loved the tiger habitat since one of the cats kept playing with his ball and throwing it into the small pond. Castiel leads them to the lion exhibit next and Dean sees his opportunity. A very large male lion is walking up a pile of rocks. The lion must know how cool he looks because he is totally swaying his hips more than necessary. 

“Hey kids, check out the lion up there! He has his very own cat-walk,” Dean exclaims with a smile. The kids giggle at his pun and look up at the magnificent creature strutting across the rocks. Without meaning to, Dean’s eyes skip over to Cas to see his reaction. To his great disappointment, the man seems to have a very angry scowl on his face. Dean’s smile falls instantly. He doesn’t know why the zookeeper is getting so upset about some stupid puns, but it's really starting to irritate him right back. Dean is here for the kids, trying to make this trip more entertaining and fun for them. What does it matter if their tour guide doesn’t like his jokes? Funny how Dean has to keep reminding himself that. 

Castiel’s mood improves after he gives his fun facts about the lions and smiles at the kids when they ask questions. Dean tries really hard not to get jealous. Cas has an adorable grin on his face when he focuses on the kids and it melts Dean’s heart a little. Men who are good with kids are instantly twelve times more attractive. As quickly as the thought flashed through his mind, Dean shoos it away with a growl. The blue-eyed zookeeper is not adorable, or the most handsome man Dean has ever seen, or the perfect guy for him. Dean plays the words on a loop in his mind trying to convince himself. It doesn’t work.

The group moves on to the next section of the zoo. Cas leads them to a few other exhibits of random animals and he has an interesting fact for all of them. The kids are loving all of the information they get from the zookeeper and eagerly write down all that they can. Dean already knows the whole class will have way more than the required five fun facts. He’s very proud of his class for how they’ve been behaving on the field trip so far. The teacher is already planning the trip for next year and however more years he will be teaching here. They come up to the otter exhibit and see the four otters playing in the water. The kids laugh when the otters come right up to the glass then swim away in a swirl of bubbles. Cas doesn’t appear to have anything to say about the creatures so Dean takes the time for another pun. He gets the class’ attention and some are already looking at him anticipating another joke.

“What would Adele say if she was an otter?”

Several kids light up and burst out in song with Dean, “HELLO FROM THE OTTER SIIIIDDDEEEEE!!”

Dean has the biggest smile on his face and he is so proud of his little ones. He hears giggles coming from all around him, his class, and even some other guests at the school all laughing with him. It makes his heart happy knowing he was able to add a little extra to their trip today. Of course, it is a bit of a disappointment when he sees Cas from the corner of his eye looking completely confused on what just happened. Dean does his best to let it go (like Elsa) and focuses on his kids again.

They move to the next habitat sadly leaving the playful otters behind. With the tour quickly coming to a close Dean knows he needs to get at least one more pun in by the time the tour is over. He has a few ideas but needs to wait for the right moment. That moment comes when they’re standing in front of the hippos and Cas is talking about the animals' diet.

“Hey Cas, do they eat potatoes?”

The zookeeper squints his eyes as he looks at Dean like he's an idiot, “No, like I was saying they’re herbivores eating mostly grass.”

“But it's a hip-potato-mus! You would think they would eat potatoes if it's in their name,” Dean grins at the other man. Once again the kids giggle around him and this time Dean focuses solely on their reaction and not the attractive man next to him. When they move on from the hungry, hungry hippos, Dean is proud of himself. It’s a small thing, but it still counts. He knows he's funny and his kids know he's funny.

Shortly after the tour comes to a close with both groups meeting back at the front gate. Dean checks in with the parent volunteers to make sure everything went smoothly in their group. Once he gets confirmation that the kids were well behaved, filled out their sheet, and enjoyed the gummy bears, Dean looks around for the two zookeepers to say his thanks. He finds them a few feet away with Cas telling Gabe something and neither looking very happy about it. Gabe glances up in Dean’s direction with a scowl on his face causing Dean’s stomach to drop instantly. Is Cas complaining about Dean’s puns? Did Dean do something wrong? Stepped in when he should have just let the zookeeper do his job? A million thoughts rush through Dean’s mind and he comes to the conclusion that they will never be welcomed back to the zoo. Swallowing his pride Dean makes his way over to the two zookeepers to apologize and beg for another opportunity next year.

“Hey Cas, could I talk to you for a minute real quick?” 

“Yes, of course, Dean,” Cas answers with a slight squint. Gabriel gives him a small nod then heads over to the office at the front gates. Dean tries not to think too hard of what the zookeeper is going to tell the other workers about Dean’s class. “What can I help you with?”

“Um… I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. I know it wasn’t very professional of me and I probably overstepped multiple times. This is your job, you know what you’re doing, and you really didn’t need me stepping in all the time. Especially with my stupid jokes and puns that aren’t even funny,” Dean takes a deep breath and looks down at the ground, not brave enough to look the man in the eyes. “I just hope that my stupidity won’t cause you to ban my class. I promise I’ll be on my best behavior and will be completely professional next year. I can even request a different tour guide if I’ve made you uncomfortable.”

“Dean, what are you talking about?” Castiel asks with confusion clear in his voice.

“My jokes and puns?” Dean finally looks up and sees the head tilt again. “I thought they were annoying to you and you were getting irritated with me. Especially at the lion habitat. You didn’t look too pleased with my joke about the catwalk.”

“Oh Dean, no that wasn’t it at all! I saw a family that was taunting the other cats, which we don’t tolerate at all, and they left their trash on the ground. I didn’t even hear you say that,” Cas explains with a pleading look.

Confused Dean looks at Cas not quite understanding yet, “But when you were just talking to Gabe he looked at me and did not look happy at all.”

“That’s because I was telling him about the family, which just so happened to be standing behind you getting ready to leave. Gabriel went to talk to them and the people at the office to let them know that they aren’t welcome back here anymore. He is not angry with you at all I promise, and neither am I for that matter.”

“So, I didn’t do anything wrong then?” Dean asks, trying to make sense of everything.

“Not at all,” Cas replies with a small smile. A wave of relief washes over Dean. He didn’t disrespect the zookeeper. He didn’t get the class kicked out of the zoo. He still didn’t make the blue eyes man laugh at his jokes though.

“Did you not like my jokes then? Because if they were rude or disrespectful to you or the animals I can stop, I just thought the kids might enjoy them,” Dean says slightly embarrassed.

“My ‘people skills’ are rusty so to speak,” Cas says hesitantly and uses actual finger quotes, which causes Dean to smile. “I often don’t catch jokes, or puns, or references. Gabriel often makes fun of me for my lack of ‘pop culture knowledge’.”

Dean actually laughs out loud when Cas uses the finger quotes again, “Well good to know you don’t actually think I’m not funny then.”

“I’m sure if you got paired with Gabriel for this tour he would’ve loved your jokes and would have plenty of his own to add.”

As if summoned Gabe walks back over, “Alright Cassie, I talked to the family and the people working the gates today, so everyone is on the same page. Thanks for reporting that, I hate people like that. Like, respect the animals, man.”

“Thank you, Gabriel.”

“Dean-o! How’d you like your tour with sassy Cassie here?” Gabe asks with a huge grin and wink in Dean’s direction.

“Uh, it went well for the most part! He missed my stupid animal puns, but that’s not a big deal,” Dean replies with a small shrug.

“Oh yes! Cassie tends to miss those types of things,” The shorter man says while nudging Cas in the ribs.

“Thank you, Gabriel. Now if you two will excuse me I have a meeting later this afternoon I have to get ready for. It was nice to meet you, Dean,” Cas says politely then he turns and walks further into the zoo. Dean doesn’t even realize he's watching the man walk away until he hears a throat clear next to him. He turns to see Gabe smirking at him again.

“You like him, don’t you?” Gabe asks. Dean is surprised to hear no mockery in the shorter man's voice.

“Uh, yeah a little. I don’t even know if he’s single though, or even into guys to begin with,” Dean mumbles, slightly embarrassed at being so transparent with his emotions.

“Ohh believe me! Cassie is very into the male form, and very into yours specifically.”

“What?” Dean looks at the man in shock. “How do you know?”

“I’ve been working with Castiel for a few years now, some might even call us friends. I know him. I also gave him a hard time about you when we saw you checking in. Then I saw your reaction to him and well it was practically a no brainer to set you two up. Did it work?” 

“No, it didn’t. I kept saying some jokes and puns for the kids and Cas seemed to have no reaction whatsoever to me. I never would have guessed he was attracted to me if you didn’t just say something. Are you sure?” Dean can’t help the pain of disappointment that shoots through him. He might’ve had a chance with the unfairly attractive zookeeper and he blew it.

“Positive. Don’t give up hope yet Dean-o, I can see you already blaming yourself for messing this up. How about this? A couple of us go to this bar every Friday night and Castiel promised he would go with us this time. Why don't you show up and then maybe you will have another chance with him?” Gabe suggests.

“You would do that for me?” Dean asks, slightly suspicious.

“Really I’m doing it for Cassie. That kid needs someone in his life and I think you would be good for him.”

“You don’t even know me!”

“True, but I trust Cassie and he likes you,” Gabe sticks a lollipop in his mouth, which confuses Dean on where he even got it from. “Meet us at the bar at 8:00. And don’t mess it up this time.”

With those last words, Gabe walks away and leaves Dean standing alone. That is until he remembers he has a class he needs to attend to. Turning around he finds his class loading the bus with the help of the parent volunteers. He hurries over and with one final headcount they head off, back to the school.

* * *

  
  


By the time Friday night rolls around, Dean has worked himself into a nervous wreck. He doesn’t quite understand why. Dean is usually the type of guy who can turn on the charm, with men and women, by flipping a switch. It comes naturally for him, always has. With Castiel though, Dean doesn’t even know if he can make it to the bar tonight. Doubts wash in causing Dean to rethink everything. He doesn’t even know the guy! The only information Dean has on the zookeeper is just that, he works at the zoo. Ok, that isn’t entirely true. Dean knows the man is amazing with kids, is incredibly smart and knows a ton about his animals, doesn’t understand most jokes and references, and is the most gorgeous man Dean has ever laid eyes on. If it weren’t for Gabe’s comment on Cas’ attraction to Dean then he probably would have moved on by now. But no, now there's this sliver of hope and it is driving Dean crazy.

“Dean, you need to calm down,” His little brother interrupts his thoughts. 

“Sammy, I can’t do this.”

“Dude, what is with you? I’ve never seen you get this worked up about a guy before,” Sam says while watching Dean pace across the room.

“I made a fool out of myself last time with all of my lame animal jokes, he probably thinks I’m an idiot. We should just not go,” Dean replies with a sense of finality.

“Yeah, no that’s not happening. You asked me to go to this bar with you, so we are going to go. I’m only in town for this weekend and the next time I’ll see you is Christmas, so let's make the most of this.”

“Yes! Exactly! I need to use this time to focus on my little brother instead of some random guy I just met,” Dean claps his hands with a big smile on his face. He found a valid reason to get out of going to the bar, but Sam’s signature bitch face says otherwise.

“Dean, you know I love you,” Sam begins.

“Ah come on man, no chick flicks.”

“You love chick flicks. Anyways, there is no way we would be able to enjoy our time together if you’re this worked up about this guy. So we are going to this bar, you are going to talk to him and then we can enjoy the rest of the weekend without you being all weird. Deal?” Sam says with a look on his face that allows no arguments.

“Fine. Deal,” Dean mumbles. “Bitch.”

Sam smiles, “Jerk.”

With those final words, the two brothers grab their jackets and head out the door. They pile into the impala and take off towards the bar Gabe told Dean about. The brothers walk in a little before 8:00 and head straight for the bar. Dean looks around but doesn’t see Gabe or Castiel yet. He orders a beer and gulps it down quickly before ordering a second. Sam gives him a worried look but Dean ignores it in favor of sipping his new beer.

“Dean-o!” A shout comes from behind him. Dean turns to see Gabe, with a huge smile, and Castiel, with a confused head tilt, making their way to the bar. He’s not sure what he was expecting, but Cas looks damn good out of his zookeeper outfit (don’t get him wrong, the uniform also did it for Dean). Cas is wearing tight black jeans and a dark blue button-down. Even with the bad lighting in the bar, Dean can tell the shirt makes Cas’ eyes pop.

“Hey Gabe,” Dean risks a glance at Cas and gets lost in a deep pit of blue. He forgot how amazing Cas’ eyes are up close. “Cas.”

“Hello Dean,” A shiver runs down Dean’s spine. That voice. 

“Um, this is my little brother Sammy. Sam, this is Gabriel and Castiel,” Dean quickly introduces them to take the attention off of him.

“Hellloooooooo Sasquatch,” Gabriel slides right up to Sam with a flirty smirk on his face causing Dean to roll his eyes.

“Down boy, he’s married,” Dean mutters, but then breaks out laughing at the look on his brother’s face. He looks so shocked and a bit scared of the shorter man. Which is ridiculous given the eight inches he has on the guy.

“Damn, I can still look though right?” Gabe says sending a wink to Sam. Before Sam can respond Gabe orders drinks for himself and Castiel. The bartender hands Gabe some sugary concoction, causing the other three men to wrinkle their noses, and hands Cas a beer. “Shall we?”

Gabe leads them over to a booth in the corner. Sam slides in and Dean sits down next to him with Cas directly across from him. 

“I don’t mean to be rude, but may I ask why you’re here?” Cas asks Dean.

Dean shoots a glare in Gabe’s direction hoping his anger comes off clearly. How dare he set this up without giving Cas any warning? What if Cas doesn’t even want to see Dean again, and then they just ambushed him tonight. Dean meets Cas’ gaze and lets out a defeated sigh. Honesty is probably the best option here.

“Gabe mentioned that you guys would be here tonight and if I wanted a second chance with you, I should show up. If that makes you uncomfortable though we can leave and pretend this never happened. Really it’s not a big deal,” Dean is already pushing himself out of the booth not making eye contact with the man. A hand on his shoulder stops him and he turns to see Sam gesturing across the table. Dean looks up and sees a small smile on Cas’ face.

“You wanted a second chance with me?” He asks. When Dean nods his smile grows. “I did too.”

That gives Dean pause, “Wait, what?”

“I thought I scared you away after not understanding your jokes and being a grump after I saw that one family. I didn’t think you would want to be with someone as boring as me,” Cas explains.

“First off, you are not boring. You have incredible fun facts about all kinds of animals, and anyone with that kind of knowledge is not boring. And second, I didn’t scare you off with my stupid jokes?” 

“I really liked the one with the gummy bears!” 

That makes Dean smile, he’s proud of that one. The conversation between the four of them flows easier after that. Dean and Cas keep sharing shy smiles and on more than one occasion they get locked into a staring contest. It's not Dean’s fault though, you can’t blame the guy for getting lost in the beautiful blue pools. At one point Sam gets out to go to the bathroom, but ends up getting sucked into a game of pool with some college boys. Gabe also ends up leaving the pair to join a pretty brunette at the bar. Dean and Cas spend hours trading their life stories and finding out more about each other. Cas learns all about Dean’s obsession with his car and in turn, Dean learns all about Cas’ fascination with bees. 

It’s nearing midnight when Sam finally comes back over to the table looking ready to head out. He does feel bad about taking his brother away from Cas though. Luckily, Dean is able to reassure him that he has a coffee date with the attractive zookeeper on Tuesday. They say their goodbyes and Cas surprises Dean by placing a chaste kiss on his cheek causing him to blush the whole way to the car. It lasts until his brother starts laughing at him. A quick punch to the arm shuts him up, but Sam still has a smug smile on his lips by the time they walk into Dean’s apartment. 

Dean goes to bed that night with a huge smile on his face and his dreams are filled with messy dark hair and bright blue eyes. It’s the best night of sleep Dean has had in a very long time.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all enjoyed! I've been playing with the idea of writing other parts of their relationship (proposal, wedding, Claire...) but haven't decided if I want to dive into something like that yet. Let me know if you think that's a good idea or if I should leave it where it is! Thank you again for reading!! Kudos and comments much appreciated :)
> 
> **Edit: Part 3 is on its way!! :)


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